


wrongs set right [shinnok & raiden] + artwork

by judgmentfist



Category: Mortal Kombat (Video Games), Mortal Kombat - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-07-13
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:15:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25244515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/judgmentfist/pseuds/judgmentfist
Summary: this is a sort of epilogue to mk11 - something un-posted from my archives, from long ago. shinnok and raiden make peace and discuss the future, all the way back at the dawn of time...not actually a very shippy fic, but i'm putting it in the shinnok/raiden tag (so that gross incest fic with cetrion won't be the first one, because how fucking dare you)this includes the artwork that originally went with this concept, too!- - -“Hrm.” Shinnok scoffs under his breath, but keeps talking. “In time, I embraced my fate, as all must do, but I was not always the person I became. You know me. You know what I can do-- the skill with which I crafted my amulet. I created, I built, I enchanted... I’d hoped to break free of it all, when I-- attempted to usurp your power as Earthrealm’s protector.”Raiden’s voice is gentle, barely rising above a whisper. “I recall it.”“I’d hope so.” Shinnok frowns, scrunching his nose. “I…” The words choke in his throat. He tries again. “I’m-- I’m sorry about that entire incident.”For once, the thunder god is genuinely shocked. “Really?”
Relationships: Raiden/Shinnok (Mortal Kombat)
Kudos: 10





	wrongs set right [shinnok & raiden] + artwork

“What, precisely, will be the consequences of these actions? And don’t you dare say it’s nothing, Raiden.” Shinnok settles back, finding a more comfortable seat atop a rocky crag somewhere in the midst of the dawn of time. Much to his frustration, it’s more scenic than he expected. He doesn’t have as much of an excuse to be irritated. “I know you too well for that.” 

Raiden is eternally unbothered. His eyes no longer glow with the vivid blue that Shinnok always knew, but he still retains some of his divine abilities. It was easy enough to find Shinnok lurking around the realms, and bring him here to talk, lifting the crushing weight of loneliness for both. “The timeline will repair itself. It heals, as all things do.” 

Shinnok is unconvinced. “All things except me.” 

“You had not had the opportunity to heal.” 

Shinnok snaps at Raiden suddenly, turning his head in a sudden jerk of his neck to cast a harsh glare. He winces, and rubs his throat with one bony hand. He still feels the pain of an injury far in the future. “Heal from _what,_ Raiden? I remember it all.” 

Raiden gazes at him serenely. Shinnok would swear there’s still a flicker of lightning somewhere in those strangely normal eyes. “What do you feel you need to heal from?” 

“I haven’t a clue.” Shinnok scoffs at the idea, dismissing it in a dramatic wave of his hand. He pulls his loose sleeves up around his wrists, rubbing the satiny cloth between pale fingertips. He used to burn bright with the hot fire of dark magic, but now, he’s just cold. Not even the pleasantly temperate weather can solve that. “Anything? Everything? What would you say?” 

Raiden purses his lips, bowing his head. Carefully, he lifts the broad-brimmed hat off, setting it aside, and gazes at Shinnok more closely. “ _You_ are asking _me_ for counsel?”

“My own counsel hasn’t worked out particularly well for me in the past, dare I say.” Shinnok slumps his shoulders, resting his chin in his hands. “I’m disappointed. Here we are at the beginning of time, and I see no dinosaurs. How dull. Must I summon a skeletal tyrannosaur myself?” 

“This stage of time is only temporary. A transitional phase, so to speak.” A smile twitches at the corner of Raiden’s mouth. “I suspect you are as powerless as I am right now. We need to rest, recharge--”

Shinnok cuts him off with a dismissive sneer. He barely has control of his emotions, his psyche still damaged from all he endured in the future. “You surrendered your power because you could no longer handle it. Such weakness!” 

“Stop lashing out.” Raiden accepts it, not even granting Shinnok a glance in his direction. He’s in a volatile state, now more than ever. He must be handled with care. “So your moth--”

“Do _not_ say it.” 

“Kronika--”

“She is _not_ my mother!” Shinnok’s creaky voice rises, insistent and grating. “She found Cetrion and I, long ago, at a point in time much like now. We were unable to resist the temptation of guidance, care and comfort. She molded and shaped us to suit our needs, convinced us that she herself had granted us all the life and power with which we were gifted and burdened. The whole thing was an incredible fraud!” 

Raiden nods slowly, carefully, treading with caution. “That, then, is the truth of which you speak?” 

“Yes. I never wished to be a god of death!” Shinnok grits his teeth, clenching one slender bony fist. “Why am I telling you? You know what happened.”

“It can be healing to speak about it. Go on.” 

“Hrm.” Shinnok scoffs under his breath, but keeps talking. “In time, I embraced my fate, as all must do, but I was not always the person I became. You know me. You know what I can do-- the skill with which I crafted my amulet. I created, I built, I enchanted... I’d hoped to break free of it all, when I-- attempted to usurp your power as Earthrealm’s protector.” 

Raiden’s voice is gentle, barely rising above a whisper. “I recall it.” 

“I’d hope so.” Shinnok frowns, scrunching his nose. “I…” The words choke in his throat. He tries again. “I’m-- I’m sorry about that entire incident.” 

For once, the thunder god is genuinely shocked. “Really?”

“Yes. It was an unwise course of action.” Shinnok speaks quickly, wanting to move past the confession. “But I still have absolutely no regrets about wanting to break the chains that Kronika placed upon me-- upon _us.”_ He grimaces, flooded with recollections of his sister and their many conflicts over the centuries and eons. Though they share nearly no resemblance, he came to accept her as his sibling and equal, long ago. It’s all he remembers, thanks to Kronika’s meddling. Sanctimonious, infuriating Cetrion, so convinced of her own virtue and righteousness... “I wish I could have showed her the truth!” 

“I know.” Raiden lays a hand on Shinnok’s shoulder, startling him with a slight static zap. “The outcome was not what I desired, either.” 

“Not what _you_ desired?!” Instant outrage floods Shinnok’s mind, an angry flush rising to his cheeks. He swats Raiden’s hand away. “You _helped_ her expel me from the council of the elders! That burden is on you, too!” 

“I regret it all, now.” A shadow crosses the other god’s face. He glances away, studying the rosy horizon and swaths of flourishing trees. “You have confessed enough. May I do the same?” 

Shinnok sniffs. “Be my guest.” 

“I am grateful to have you here once again. This is a far, far better fate than what I… did to you.” Raiden closes his eyes, reluctant to even acknowledge the actions of his corrupted self, but to ignore it would be disrespectful to Shinnok. “Once, we were trapped in a grim reality. Now, we are exploring what might have been. I prefer that.”

“Raiden, if you even dare say one word about being glad Kronika did what she did--” 

“ _Obviously_ I am not! How could I be?” Now it’s Raiden’s turn to flare up with anger and grief. A mix of emotions passes through his face, caught in a surge of deep dismay. “The outcome is what it is. The worst has happened. Am I not permitted to be grateful for the only good thing that came from it?” He swallows hard, ignoring a lump in his throat. “Except for Liu Kang, I have lost all the mortals I cared for. All my work to protect Earthrealm and shape the humans, undone...” 

Shinnok reaches out and tentatively pats him on the arm, then awkwardly retracts his hand. He clenches his jaw as frustration floods through him. “Then why aren’t you off somewhere meddling with the damned hourglass? Fix it!” 

“I need time to recover. Lending Liu Kang my powers has drained me almost completely.” Raiden shakes his head, gazing down at the mottled surface of the rock plateau. Geological formations have never been his area of interest. but it’s easier than trying to make eye contact with Shinnok, who is fuming with frustration. “I may need your assistance.” 

“Oh? Is that why you went to find me, brought me here, treated me kindly-- just to ask a favor, force me into some kind of obligation? How typical of everyone I have ever met!” The words spill out of Shinnok before he can stop them, a torrent of pent-up frustration and rage. “I am who I am now, as much as I may loathe it. There is obviously no changing that. But-- imagining what I _could_ have been…” He can’t finish the sentence. “Enough of this. What do you need from me?” 

“Moral support and guidance, mostly.” Raiden answers with a gentle shrug. “You existed before me, so you are still here… the only one, in fact, who still is.” He lifts his head, catching Shinnok’s eye for a fleeting moment. The elder god, too, is in some kind of mortal form, but his eyes are glowing now. They’re brilliant green, rather than the ghostly dead white that Raiden used to know. 

“The universe has not yet seen fit to grant me the return of my brother.” Raiden scans the landscape in front of him, as though he might be lucky enough to see Fujin stepping out from behind a tree. “I presume the same is for your s--” He catches himself. “Cetrion, and the other cohort of elder gods.” 

“Yes. Presumably.” Shinnok lifts his chin, resisting the urge to glare at Raiden. He knows the other god is trying his best, and if they must coexist, he needs to learn patience. “For so long, Kronika convinced us that she’d made us and brought us forth, like her creation, Geras. I believed it! I think Cetrion still believes-- believed…” He trails off into silence. “I pity Geras. He is tied to her willpower, literally. And yet-- so was I, figuratively. Am I any better?” 

“It is not a question of better or worse, Shinnok.” Raiden’s voice pulls him back to reality again, snapping him out of a sudden daydream of resurging recollections. “Your former future is now nothing more than a fading memory. When we return to the present day, all will be set right.” 

“Please tell me we won’t have to wait for civilization to evolve. I don’t think I could stand watching the spectacle of you trying to negotiate with a prehistoric humanoid.” 

“Something tells me you’d enjoy watching that, Shinnok.” 

“Doubtful. I would perish from laughter.” 

“I know you’d survive.” Raiden actually smiles. “I must say, this is preferable to our past.” 

“I’m inclined to agree with you there.” Shinnok sits back, leaning against the rock, and stretches out, trying to enjoy the warmth of the rising sun. “So what do we do, wait for Liu Kang to program the hourglass’s path correctly? I’m not confident in his abilities.” 

“He’s guarding it, for now. He believes he is shaping the future. In a way, he is.” 

Shinnok glances at him sidelong. “He ‘believes’ what? Did you lie to him?” 

“Not exactly!” Raiden is immediately defensive, and a bit hurt. “The hourglass will grant visions of one’s desired future. Liu Kang’s heart is pure enough that he can be trusted with it.” 

“But he can’t rewind time by himself? Not even with his divine powers?” Shinnok arches an eyebrow. “I’d like to know the specifics. Be honest with me.” 

“Right now… no, he cannot. Nonetheless, his benevolent influence on it will help.” Raiden sighs, and rubs his temples. Suddenly uncomfortable, he reaches back and unzips his cowl, pulling it off. His long silver hair streams loosely down his back. He shakes his head, letting it settle around his shoulders. “I apologize for being indirect. The truth is, right now, without the power of an elder god, the hourglass cannot be activated at sufficient strength to revert to our current time.” 

Shinnok takes a moment to process this revelation. “An elder god? Specifically?” 

“Perhaps.” 

“An elder god such as myself, dare I suggest?” 

Raiden coughs. “Maybe.” 

Shinnok tosses his head, folding his arms in a huff. “Raiden, don’t be coy. You need me for your little plan.” 

“‘Little plan’? No. That is not accurate. Given sufficient time, Liu Kang and I could combine our powers and--” Raiden stops short, feeling Shinnok’s glare. “Yes.” 

Shinnok smirks, and inches closer across the rock, scooting over to sit close beside Raiden. “What privileges will you grant me, in exchange for this favor?” 

“I cannot grant you any gift beyond what you already have. Now that Kronika is gone, you are not obligated to follow her manipulation. You are free to pursue your own destiny, on… Earthrealm, or elsewhere. You need not be the god of death.” 

“Oh, it’s much too late for that. I’ve grown very fond of the skeletal abilities.” Shinnok pushes up his sleeves, wiggling his fingers ominously. His illusion and mimicry powers are still dormant, which is very aggravating. Now would be the perfect time to bother Raiden with the skeleton hands. “Nevertheless, the Netherrealm isn’t my ideal place of occupancy. I may take you up on your offer instead.” 

“That would be a far better future, for you and for me. I accept this.” Raiden nods slowly, swallowing hard. It’s a profound moment, to come to closure with a former enemy. All at once, he feels a surge of fury towards Kronika, for stealing this potential away from him so long ago. It fades just as quickly, though, replaced by quiet peace. “Shinnok… why did you resent me?”

He closes his eyes, dimming the vivid green glow. “I envied you. There’s a clear difference.” 

Raiden is patient. “Why did you do what you did?” 

“Anger and hatred poisoned my heart, Raiden! Do you care to know the worst part? I’m not sure whether that was my own emotion, or Kronika’s malice, implanted in me to make me some kind of wretched scapegoat!” Shinnok seethes at the thought, clenching his fists tightly. A tiny wisp of magical fire flares up, darting between his knuckles, but fades just as quickly. “I want a different outcome…” 

“And so you shall have it.” Raiden lays a hand on the satin cloth covering Shinnok’s thin forearm, feeling a spark of warmth finally lighting up the pale god’s fragile body. It reassures him to see Shinnok returning to his best self, rather than his worst. “I am trusting you very deeply, by granting you control over the path of the future. That is, as the mortals say, a leap of faith. I hope you understand that.” 

“It’s a leap of faith in the right direction.” Shinnok offers a soft sincere smile, and relaxes, breathing deeply. The crushing weight over his shoulders that plagued him for all of eternity has lifted, though he can hardly say how or why. “I’ll grant you the assistance you need, on one condition…” 

Raiden meets his eyes, gently and kindly. “Yes?” 

Shinnok flexes his fingers, cracking his knuckles. “If Kronika returns, allow me to be the one to destroy her.” 


End file.
